Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Oh Frabjous Day !

Alas, it doesn't feel like May 1997, though. Perhaps it's a good thing. I have no illusions about Cameron to be shattered.

A pity there isn't a Lib Dem Chancellor - that would have bolted them into the Government more securely than anything else - and given the unpleasant things the Chancellor will have to do the Blessed Vincent de Cable would have been a neat choice. As it is, there's still the possibility that they'll be able to distance themselves from all that. Labour will sing 'Tory cuts' from Day One - a Lib Dem in the hot seat would have made that more difficult. And besides, it may not be fair, but George Osborne still looks as if his special subject at school was holding other boys heads down the toilet and pulling the chain.

I approve of them taking on the raising of the income tax threshhold to 10K, but how will that work in practice without giving us all a tax cut ? How do you taper that off without producing higher marginal tax rates for still low-paid people ?

I can see only one answer - a rise in income tax such that, say, someone on average wages or thereabouts pays a little more than now (we have to share the pain), those below pay the same or less tax, those above pay more. And VAT will presumably be 20%.

Don't like it, but Gordon's sums haven't added up since Prudence was put on crack and made to work the streets in about 2000.

Gordo was reminding us of the family tax credit scheme being a great idea.

The state takes some taxes from the low paid, then if they ask nicely the state gives it back.

The obvious solution would be to change their tax status accordingly, so they just keep the money in the first place.

Thats bad news for those extra admin people whose job it was to dish the tax credits out again but then I presume the whole idea was to tie them into voting Labour in the first place. Labour have lost, there is no further need to maintain that function.

So via family tax credit we already have, in principle, forgone that tax revenue. This tax threshold change will cut many people out of the FTC scheme with resulting cost savings for the state. In theory...

Vince Cable is often wrong about a lot of things - but he isn't stupid and certainly not stupid enough to take on the role of Chancellor of the Exchequer when he knows whats coming and I think he knows better than most.

I guess we’ll have to see. A lot is changing. One of the most interesting electoral stories that has emerged in recent days is the transition in leadership from the Baby Boomers to the new generation in control of Britain: Generation Jones—between the Boomers and GenXers. Prime Minister Cameron, as well as Clegg and many in the likely new Cabinet are GenJonesers. The new Parliament will be filled with more GenJones MPs than from any other generation. It’s a new day in Britain…and I’m very curious to see how these generational changes play out.Here’s a quick overview: http://www.generationjones.org.uk/ and this article about GenJones in The Indie a few days ago nailed it for me: http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/jonathan-pontell-cleggs-rise-is-the-sound-of-generation-jones-clearing-its-throat-1961191.html